Learn Hardcore French: La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville.

Idiomatic English uses noise pollution, and that is exactly how French speakers understand pollution sonore. It’s a standard, common expression, especially in newspapers, official documents, and more formal speech.

In everyday casual conversation, people might also just talk about le bruit (the noise), but pollution sonore is perfectly natural and not overly technical.

Why is it la pollution and not le pollution? How do I know the gender?

Pollution is a feminine noun in French, so it takes la: la pollution.

There’s no reliable rule that says “-tion = feminine” that works 100% of the time, but in practice, almost all nouns ending in -tion are feminine:

la situation
la nation
la conversation
la pollution

So when you see a noun ending in -tion, assume it’s feminine and use la, une, and feminine adjective agreement (forte, importante, etc.).

Why is sonore after pollution and not before it?

In French, most adjectives normally come after the noun.

Sonore is one of those regular adjectives that follows the noun:

la pollution sonore – noise pollution
une alarme sonore – an audible alarm

Only certain common adjectives (often about beauty, age, goodness, size, etc.) tend to come before the noun (the so‑called BAGS adjectives), like:

un grand problème
une belle ville

Since sonore is not in that group, it stays after pollution: la pollution sonore.

Why is it forte and not fort?

Forte is the feminine form of the adjective fort (strong).

Adjectives in French must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe. Here:

Noun: la pollution (feminine singular)
Adjective: fort → feminine singular form = forte

So you get:

La pollution sonore est forte.
(feminine noun → feminine adjective)

For comparison:

Le bruit est fort. (bruit is masculine → masculine adjective fort)
Les pollutions sont fortes. (plural → fortes)

Could we use a different adjective instead of forte here, like élevée or importante?

Yes. All of these are natural, but with slightly different nuances:

La pollution sonore est forte.
“The noise pollution is strong/loud.”
→ Emphasizes intensity, how “strong” or “powerful” it feels.
La pollution sonore est élevée.
“The noise pollution is high.”
→ Sounds a bit more technical or statistical (like levels on a scale).
La pollution sonore est importante.
“The noise pollution is significant.”
→ Stresses the seriousness or scale of the problem.

All three are correct; choice depends on style and what you want to emphasize.

What exactly does au centre-ville mean? Is it like “downtown” or “in the city center”?

Au centre-ville means in the city center or downtown.

centre = center
ville = city
centre-ville (as one hyphenated unit) = the central part of a town/city where there are usually shops, offices, etc.

So au centre-ville = à + le centre-ville = in the city center / downtown.

Why is it au centre-ville and not dans le centre-ville?

Both are grammatically correct, but they’re not used in exactly the same way:

au centre-ville
Very common and idiomatic. It usually means in the downtown area / in the city center in a general, locational sense.
→ La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville.
dans le centre-ville
Also possible, but it can feel a bit more literal: inside the central part of the city, physically within that zone. Depending on context, it may sound more specific or a bit heavier than au centre-ville.

In everyday French, au centre-ville is the default, natural choice in this sentence.

What is the function of the hyphen in centre-ville? Can I write it as centre ville?

The hyphen shows that centre-ville is treated as one compound noun, not just “center” + “city” separately.

Correct:

le centre-ville
au centre-ville

Writing centre ville without a hyphen is often seen in informal contexts, but the standard, recommended spelling is with a hyphen. In careful or formal writing, you should use centre-ville.

Can I move au centre-ville to another position in the sentence?

Yes, French word order here is quite flexible. All of these are possible:

La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville. (neutral order)
Au centre-ville, la pollution sonore est forte. (emphasis on location)
La pollution sonore, au centre-ville, est forte. (more marked; adds emphasis/contrast)

The first one (the original) is the most neutral and common. Moving au centre-ville to the beginning often highlights where this is true.

Could I say Il y a beaucoup de pollution sonore au centre-ville instead? How does that differ?

Yes, that’s a very natural alternative:

Il y a beaucoup de pollution sonore au centre-ville.
= “There is a lot of noise pollution downtown.”

Difference in nuance:

La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville.
Describes the quality/intensity of the noise pollution (it is strong/high).
Il y a beaucoup de pollution sonore au centre-ville.
Emphasizes the quantity (“a lot of”) rather than characterizing it as strong.

Both convey a similar idea; it’s mainly a stylistic shift.

What’s the difference between pollution sonore, bruit, and bruyant?

They’re related but not interchangeable:

pollution sonore (feminine noun phrase)
= noise pollution, unwanted noise considered as a form of pollution or environmental problem.
→ La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville.
bruit (masculine noun)
= noise, sound (especially unpleasant or disturbing sound).
→ Il y a beaucoup de bruit au centre-ville. – “There is a lot of noise downtown.”
bruyant / bruyante (adjective)
= noisy.
→ Le centre-ville est très bruyant. – “Downtown is very noisy.”

Same area of meaning, but pollution sonore is more formal/technical; bruit and bruyant are more everyday words.

How do you pronounce the whole sentence? Are there any liaisons I should know?

Pronunciation (approximate, in IPA):

La → /la/
pollution → /pɔ.ly.sjɔ̃/
sonore → /sɔ.nɔʁ/
est → /ɛ/
forte → /fɔʁt/
au → /o/
centre-ville → /sɑ̃tʁə.vil/

Put together:

La pollution sonore est forte au centre-ville.
/la pɔ.ly.sjɔ̃ sɔ.nɔʁ ɛ fɔʁt o sɑ̃tʁə.vil/

There’s no required liaison between these words in standard speech (you don’t link forte and au, for example). The main challenge is the nasal vowels (-tion → /sjɔ̃/, cen → /sɑ̃/) and the French r /ʁ/.

Why is it la pollution sonore (singular) and not les pollutions sonores?

In French (as in English with air pollution, water pollution), pollution is often used as a mass noun to talk about the general phenomenon:

La pollution sonore = noise pollution (as a general type of pollution)

You would use the plural les pollutions sonores only if you’re talking about different types or sources of noise pollution considered separately, which is less common in everyday language and more likely in technical/academic contexts.

For a general statement like this sentence, singular with la is the natural choice.